Can I Sleep With You?
by ChibiBoko
Summary: Yami happens upon someone in a way he'd never expect.... It's FINALLY DONE! Not sure I like this QuickEdit though; messes up all my spacing.
1. Now I Lay Me Down To Sleep

~00~: Yeah, it's finally back again. ^_^;; You'll probably notice that this chapter's relatively unchanged, except maybe some formatting. You'll find the same thing with chapter two; I pretty much left it alone (I actually liked the way I originally wrote those two: I couldn't bear changing them too much! ^_^;;). 

But starting a little into chapter three (which I'm not finished overhauling yet) there's gonna be some MAJOR changes from the way the story used to be, so hopefully it won't end up as cheesy as last time, ne? Still not sure if I'm gonna keep the epilogue or not, I like it though, so maybe I will...then again, if it doesn't fit with the way the rewrite turns out, I might not put it in.

But if it does seem to be getting TOO cheesy, lemme know, okay? Seriously. -_- I like the idea I got for this, but getting it down right is proving to be hard. So let me know if the changes are for the better or not! ^_^ And if they aren't better, I'll just have to try re-writing again.

DISCLAIMER: 

-_- I don't claim any possession of Yugioh. ...Dammit, this stuff always depresses me. I'm seriously thinking of putting the disclaimer in my bio like other people just so I don't have to write it over and over....

* * * * =scene change

Thoughts are in _italics._

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Can I Sleep With You?

Chapter One- _Now I Lay Me Down to Sleep_

by ChibiBoko

__

Rain...it's always raining at times like this.. Yugi smiled quietly at the thought. 

He trudged through the downpour, letting it soak through his clothes. He loved how it felt that his insides were being bathed clean; everything washed away.

He hadn't told Yami where he was going.

His mind drifted towards his darker half, and the smile turned wistful as he re-adjusted his grip on the bouquet. His heart felt surprisingly light. Yami wouldn't need to worry about anything happening to him through Yugi; the ancient pharaoh had long ago found a way to take form for himself on the material plane. He no longer had to rely on Yugi.

Yugi smiled. "I don't burden him any more." He whispered.

Passing by a store window, he caught a glimpse of his soggy appearance. He was always surprised by mirrors lately; always, he expected to change, even a little. But he never did. Even a few years after that craziness with Malik, his body hadn't gone forward, hadn't grown at all. Sometimes he thought his body just did that to keep in sync with his pysche.

__

It's definite that nothing of me has moved past anything... His eyes clouded somewhat at that, but shook it off and smiled as he picked up his pace a little. 

He needed to hurry after all.

Looking up, he saw he was nearing the iron entryway, so he quickly cut across the street, clumsily huddling his fragile package close to his chest so as not to jostle it too much. 

He was mostly successful; pale petals flew up in a breeze in his wake despite his care, coming to a landing on the pavement.

Taking a dirt pathway to his left, he strode comfortably through the aisles of stonework, coming to a stop before three distinctive pieces.

Yugi's smile widened as he spread his armful of gardenias before the trio of headstones. Kneeling before the center marker, he whispered, "Hello mother," He nodded to the marker on his left. "Father.....Grandpa." He nodded to the right. "It's good to see you again. Well," he corrected himself. "As much as I can see you like this. I imagine how you see me is from quite a different perspective now." 

He looked up at the rain wistfully, letting it bathe his face. "I've worked hard, just like you told me to father. And I looked out for grandpa and my friends, like you said mother." He smiled at the memory of that conversation.

__

"Where are you going mama?" Round violet eyes pouted as they stared up into depthless brown ones. "Why can't I come too?"

"Grandfather is old, Yugi; he needs someone to care for him, someone to love him." The pale woman whispered.

"You want me to do that?" Innocent eyes smiled now. "I can do that!"

Tired brown ones softened. "Yes, you're very good at that, sweetie." She shifted against the soft bedsheets. "And you'll do the same, I'm sure, with your friends. I know you will. You'll be good for them."

Blink. "But...I don't have any friends, mama."

She smiled. "You will..."

Solid footsteps reverberated in the hall. Turning, Yugi smiled up at the tall dark man who entered. "Daddy!" He jumped up and hugged him tightly around his waist. "You came! See mama?" He turned back toward the bed. "Daddy came! I told you so!" He smiled triumphantly.

* * * * *

__

"...Daddy?" Yugi whispered. "Why are you crying? Why did mama leave without you? She never goes on trips without you."

When the tall man spoke, it was hoarsely. "Yugi...I need you to do something for me...."

Violet eyes looked up at him. "What?"

The tall man gazed down at his son softly. "Work hard. Get strong, so you won't get hurt. Your mother wouldn't like it if you got hurt."

Yugi smiled. "I know. She doesn't like me crying...."

He played absently with a handful of gardenia petals that had fallen loose somehow. "And grandpa, don't worry; the Turtle Shop is in good hands." He chuckled. "You should see Joey and Ryou run it. I'd never have pegged those two for businessmen." He grinned.

He sighed. "I kept my promises. I always tried to, no matter what. I could never disappoint you. But..." he looked down at his hands.

"No one needs me any more, I've made sure of that," he whispered, "and I'm so tired. I've worked really hard..."

He trailed off as he lay down across the three graves. "Remember when I was little, I'd get so scared of the monsters I saw on those duel monster cards, and I'd get nightmares?" He laughed. "And then I'd run into your bedroom, dive under the covers, and pull them over my head. I was convinced that a demon was right behind me, wanting my skin."

He traced little circles in the ground. "Things're different when you get older, aren't they? I know demons aren't lurking around the corner waiting to skin me now, but...." He closed his eyes tiredly.

"...But, all the same..."

He curled up into a ball. "...can i sleep here...with..you..?....."

* * * * *

__

".....And in other news, caretakers of the Domino city cemetery found the body of a young boy early this morning, lying in one of the more secluded areas of the grounds. The coroner has identified the boy to have been Yugi Motou, a well-known prodigy of Duel Monsters. The coroner has ruled out foul play, stating that after a search of Mr. Motou's residence, it was found that he had overdosed severely on prescription sleeping pills, then wandered, probably deliriously, into the cemetery. The exact time of death unfortunately couldn't be estimated..."

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	2. I Pray the Lord my Soul to Keep

Thoughts and emphasis are in_ italics._

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Can I Sleep With You?

Chapter Two- _I Pray the Lord My Soul to Keep_

by ChibiBoko

Seto Kaiba sighed as he looked blearily at the short, slender boy on his moniter trudging apparantly aimlessly down the rain-filled street. And almost _into _the street at times. God, he was unbalanced. Luckily the whole area was deserted. 

__

Is he drunk? Seto frowned. He wouldn't have thought Yugi to be the type. Everyone knew him to work through his sorrows, not drown them. 

__

But, he hasn't been depressed lately... He rubbed his temples irritably._ Or at least, it seems that way._

"Where are you going, Motou?" He murmured as he turned his focus back to the camera shot before him. "Where could you possibly go at this time of night?"

He watched silently as the tri-coloured mop of hair -albeit a drenched mop of hair- paused before a store window, then moved on. Kaiba saw the boys eyes cloud for a moment. Rather abruptly they cleared, and Yugi hurried on.

Kaiba shifted in his leather chair. Having to resort to electronic surveillance like this didn't sit well with him. He much preferred direct confrontation. If Yami hadn't advised against it when they had last talked, he'd have had answers to all of this _weeks_ ago...

He shook his head ruefully. _Past is past Kaiba. You should know all about hindsight by now._ He watched as Yugi crossed the street, trying to hold onto his armful of flowers in a sudden breeze.

Kaiba couldn't help but note the awkwardness of the other boys limbs. Almost like a newborn who has no idea how those funny stick things attached to its body are supposed to work. His eyes narrowed. _What possessed you to put yourself through this, Motou? Why are you alone?_ Kaiba propped his head up in his hands, resting his elbows on the keyboard as the screen displayed short teenager passing through a pair of desolate-looking iron gates, leaking flowers petals that trailed behind him almost in a procession.

__

The city cemetery? He jerked upright in his seat._ What's he..._He swivelled his chair around to the calendar on the wall._ Of course,_ understanding lit Seto's eyes. "The anniversary..." ..._Yugi told me about his parents. How they...left..on their wedding anniversary. _

Well, that certainly explained a lot, to Kaiba's mind. Especially the flowers. No wonder the boy seemed incapacitated.

He stood sentinel as the trailing camera showed Yugi stumbling along a less-used path, well out of the way of the more commonly travelled ones.

__

Does he do this...every year? Kaiba wondered as Yugi knelt by the familiar tombstones, spreading the bouquet like a warm quilt over the three graves. _No,_ he decided after some thought. _I'd've noticed. _

Kaiba wished he had thought to install a sound system on that camera. He'd've given good money to hear what Yugi was saying right now.

He saw the boy lay down across the graves, closing his eyes. _Good, he's falling asleep. _He kneaded a neck he hadn't realized had been tense. _Better for him to pass out there than in the middle of a street where a car could get him._

Kaiba started reaching for the phone to call the Game Shop, but paused. Should he interfere? The rain was abating a little, and it was warm out. And he could imagine the embarassment Yugi would go through if Yami, Ryou, and Joey caught him passed out like a drunk in the cemetery. There wouldn't be too much harm in the Motou boy spending the night like that. Except for maybe a sore back in the morning..

He shook his head as he withdrew his hand._ I owe him too much to not want to spare him the embarassment. I'll just call the cemetery caretakers later so they'll wake him up before any of the others notice he's gone. No harm done for him to get a bit of restful sleep._

Taking one last glance at the moniter, he shut the computer off and stretched tiredly, yawning as he got reluctantly out of the sinfully comfortable chair.

__

I'll talk to him tomorrow about all this, advice or no advice. He turned off the office lights, and went upstairs to check on his brother before heading to bed. "Sweet dreams Yugi." He murmured into the dark.

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	3. And If I Die

As usual in my writing, Ryou Bakura is just referred to as Ryou, and his Yami as just Bakura. 

Oh yeah...just a warning here, but if this comes across as _incredibly_ cheesy, well...^_^;; sorry. The vacuum mistook the plot bunnies for dust bunnies and sucked me dry of them. 

__________________________________________________________

Can I Sleep With You?

Chapter Three-_ And If I Die..._

by ChibiBoko

__

I hate rain. 

...Was Yami's initial thought. He never could understand what Yugi saw in it. Oh, it was useful, especially in the rare times it occured back in the old days in Egypt. But outside of agriculture, what was the point?

He'd actually asked Yugi that once. The disbelief that froze on his aibou's face was something he could still see so clearly when he closed his eyes.

It was very easy, to remember things when your eyes were closed.

So he hadn't slept. _Haven't been_ able_ to, much less choose not to,_ he reflected ruefully.

Out of the corner of his eye he caught sight of Mokuba throwing a yellow rose down the hole onto the small coffin. A white one flew down to keep it company, and Yami raised his eyes from the young Kaiba to the see the elder.

Kaiba looked up, feeling someone watching him, and their eyes met across the distance.

Yami frowned and turned away, stealing out of sight into some background foliage. Perhaps if he hid the sight of that...._that_, he could imagine all this away. Pretend it's just a bad dream.

__

Worse than a bad dream. He slumped against a nearby sakura tree, head bowed. "I failed." He whispered the the air. "Yugi..."

He didn't know how long he sat there, watching the puddles grow from the rain they were fed. Sneaking a glance, he saw the recent crowd had broken down to a few scattered stragglers, who were already leaving. Good.

Walking desolately back to the deserted, too-recently dug up earth, he stared down at the sharply cut stone. "Why didn't you say anything?" He murmured absently.

"Maybe because no one asked." Yami heard the distinct crunch of shoes behind him. "Maybe because he thought he was just a bother." He whipped around to glare at Seto. "And we all know how he hated to be a _bother_."

The bitterness in the other's voice seared Yami's ears as he yanked Kaiba's head down by his black trenchcoat. "What would you know about this?" He hissed vehemently. "What would _you_ know, Kaiba, about losing someone so important that having them gone leaves nothing but-" His voice broke.

"-A hole, an ache where they used to be?" Kaiba finished for him as he gently pried Yami's fingers from the glossy leather. He frowned down at him. "You're right."

"What?" Yami glowered up at the taller brunette.

"You're right." Seto shrugged as he turned to walk away. "After all, what _could_ a man like me know about loss? Or guilt. Or the shock of realizing that someone you thought would always be there suddenly isn't anymore...And you don't have the first idea of how to cope." Yami had to strain his hearing to catch that last bit, as Kaiba seemed to prefer muttering it under his breath.

Yami looked shamefaced at his feet, then turned back to stare heartbrokenly at the awful, awful tombstone.

Kaiba's footsteps paused. "At least, I know one thing now." He said over his shoulder.

"..." His mind rehashing over snatches of painful memories, Yami barely registered the other's voice.

Kaiba's eyes saddened a little as they glanced at the white marble stone that Yami was contemplating. "...At least now," He said softly, "I know from experience not to take anyone's advice but my own." 

"..." Yami bent down to hide his face. He couldn't stand it if Kaiba of all people, saw him break down here. 

Gravel skittered as Seto started down the path back to his car, where his brother was surely waiting for him. 

"..Do you really think you need to tell me that?"

Kaiba paused.

Yami looked up forlornly at the CEO's back. "Do you really think I need to be reminded that I should have known, that I should have paid more attention to what was going on with him, that I should've _been there_-" He broke off as his voice cracked suspiciously, clenching his fists and scowling at the ground, eyes hidden beneath soggy bangs.

"That I should've kept my promise to take care of him." He whispered.

Footsteps crunched closer and stopped directly in front of the crouching ex-pharaoh. Looking up in confusion he saw Kaiba holding out his hand to him.

"Come on," Blue eyes looked down at him solemnly. "I'll give you a ride home."

But Yami shook his head. "Thank you, but I can't...I can't go back there. Not tonight." He stood up and turned to leave.

The brunette snorted. Muttering irritably under his breath, he stalked after the other boy and blocked his path. 

Yami looked at him tiredly. "What do you want, Kaiba?"

Seto looked down at him. "Where will you stay then?" Something nagged at the back of his mind when the tri-colour-haired boy had turned away. Most likely his Mokuba-soundalike-conscience, which had a bad tendency to flare up at inconvenient times. Like now.

Yami shrugged carelessly. "I'll probably go to a motel for a while."

"What about the Game Shop?"

Yami just looked at him. "Yugi and I moved out when Joey and Ryou started running it; you know that."

"I doubt the chihuahua would mind playing host for you." Seto cocked an eyebrow.

Yami turned partially to glimpse back where they had come from. "I know." He sighed quietly. "They had already offered, actually. But I refused." He looked back up at the CEO.

"They have their own grief to deal with without adding mine as well. Plus..." He swallowed. "...That place holds as many memories for me as home does." He added softly.

He stared disinterestingly at his reflection on a puddle as the silence bred and grew around his rival. "Was there anything else?" He asked without looking at the other.

"..."

"Then farewell." With that, Yami turned down another secluded path, away from the silent millionaire.

"..." Kaiba looked on after the bereaved figure as he wrestled with himself, divided between staying or chasing after him. "...You'll find, I think," He murmured to the unhearing dark one, "that memories aren't content to tie themselves to just places."

Almost unwillingly, he trudged back to the newest addition to the cemetery. Gazing down at the upchurned earth-turning-mud, he closed his eyes.

"For what it's worth, I didn't do such a good job either, Yami."

Crouching down, he traced chilled fingertips across the fresh inscription.

"Yugi...." He swallowed, standing up abruptly turning to quickly stride down the path that lead back to the rest of the living world, leaving behind those who've gone beyond tangible reach.

Wind howled mournfully through the trees, and down the deserted pathways of the cemetery, its wailing loud and despairing enough to divert the ears from an almost inaudible "...i'm sorry..."

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@_@ :Yeesh, I'm starting to think chapter three's have curses on them that induce the author into incredible cheesiness. Is this even any better than the original chapter three? I wonder....


	4. Before I Wake

Can I Sleep With You?

Chapter Four- _Before I Wake..._

Ryou warily eyed the mob that had invaded his territory.

Business at the shop was booming. News of Yugi Mouto had spread quickly, and hordes of tourists and fans alike came by the droves to pay homage to his memory.

"The next time the books show us in the red, we should do away with Joey." Bakura had snarked to him one evening.

That little comment had seen him laughing hysterically as he ran for his life down the street, Ryou and Joey right on his heels and out for blood.

Probably why I haven't seen him around the last couple days, Ryou mused. He remembered pretty distinctly some of what Joey had ranted at the ancient thief as they ran after him. Most especially the castration.

He smiled.

"Excuse me."

Ryou looked up (or rather, down) from his reverie to see a pig-tailed little girl holding up about a dozen card packs in her small hands. Even standing on tiptoe, she wasn't higher than the top of the counter.

"I wanna get these!"

Ryou raised his eyebrows. "All of them?"

The girl nodded, pig-tails bouncing enthusiastically.

He smiled and rang them through for her. "You must be quite a duelist."

"Nuh uh," the child shook her head. "But I'm gonna be! Just like Yugi!" She puffed up proudly at that declaration.

The smile stayed fixed on Ryou's face, even as his eyes saddened. "I'm sure you will."

She waved goodbye as she padded back to a teenage boy who was looking at a Dungeon Dice Monsters display. "Look big brother, I got some cards! Now I can play with you!" Ryou saw her beam up at the older boy. The scene reminded him of another sibling set.

He wondered how Yami was faring with the brothers. It had been just a little over a week since the funeral, and Kaiba had hounded after the grieving ex-pharaoh to accept his hospitality. Joey couldn't figure out why he'd bother with someone he considered a rival. To be honest, Ryou couldn't reason it out either. But he was grateful to the brunette and his little brother for their efforts all the same. Mokuba had ultimately been the one to wear Yami down enough to agree to stay with them.

His attention was diverted by a clock chime, signalling closing time. After all the sales had been rung through and the store emptied of customers, he took the sign out of the window and went tiredly upstairs to collapse on the couch in front of the TV.

"How long is Joey going to be with the take-out anyway?" He grumbled half-heartedly as he flipped disinterestedly through the channels.

That was how Joey found him when he got home almost an hour later.

"Hey lazybones! Think I can get a hand here?" He shouted from the doorway as he struggled to balance all the Chinese take-out cartons.

Ryou jumped up from the couch to grab some plates to set the table as Joey dumped his load on the kitchen counter.

"Whew! Sorry I took so long," the blond apologized. "But I had a hell of a time waiting in line. Guess everyone's in a mood for Chinese tonight." He grinned over his shoulder at Ryou.

They sat down and ate in relative silence. Well, as silently as Joey ever ate, anyway. As patient a teacher as Ryou tried to be, Joey simply never caught on to table manners too well.

After gulping half his glass to try to wash away a chunk of food that went down the wrong way, Joey looked up to see his lover just trailing his fork through his food, head bowed in thought.

"Don't think about it too much. Yugi wouldn't like it."

Ryou looked up blinking at him. "How did.."

"..I know?" Joey set down his fork. "It's always easy to tell with you. So, wanna talk about it?"

"I don't know if it'll help..."

Joey snorted. "How could it hurt? C'mon gimme a shot." He leaned his head on his hands.

Ryou sighed and put his fork down as well. "I was just thinking about where Yugi was found that morning. Did you notice? The graves he was lying on? They were of his family."

Joey's eyes widened. "No way." he breathed. "I didn't notice at all." He looked down, hiding his face behind a curtain of bangs. "I sorta had others thing on my mind."

Ryou nodded. "Yeah, everyone did. I actually didn't think of it until after the," he swallowed, "the funeral."

Joey lifted his glass for a long swallow. "So," he wiped water from the corner of his mouth. "So do you think it means anything?"

"I'm not sure, really. It just struck me as strange." Ryou resumed picking at his food with his fork.

"Yeah..."

Joey shifted in his seat, trying to get more comfortable as an awkward silence fell in the kitchen.

"Ya know, " Joey's eyes flicked over to Ryou as he lifted his glass again, "Did you ever find out what that whole disappearance mess was about? Ya know, when you found him that one night when we were all out looking. 'Bout a month ago, I think."

Ryou looked up from his plate in confusion.

"No, Joey. I never found him, remember?" he murmured. "I looked all night too, same as everyone else when we had heard that he didn't show up for that TV interview." Joey cradled one of Ryou's hands in both of his. "I had such a bad feeling back then, I was so sure I would find him beaten in some alley or, or worse."

He looked up into honey-coloured eyes.

"I can't remember ever being so relieved in my life when we all saw him the next morning, carefree as he had been in the old days." A rueful smile crept unwillingly onto his face. "To think I actually thought things would be okay, that any of us believed him when he said he was fine again." His voice cracked on the last sentence.

Joey got up out of his chair still holding Ryou's hand, leading Ryou over to the couch. Leaning back against the cushions, he pulled the albino into his lap, wrapping his arms around his love.

Sighing his leaned his cheek against the other's hair as he stroked Ryou's back soothingly. He relaxed a little when he felt the tense shoulders ease their shaking a bit.

"We all blame ourselves for not seeing it, Ryou." Joey let out a soft breath into the white hair, dishevelling it further. He frowned suddenly.

"Ryou?"

"Mm."

He stared at the opposite wall, not really seeing it as the wheels creaked in his head. "If you didn't find Yugi, why did he say he talked to you?"

Ryou blinked, and leaned away to look into Joey's face. "He did? I don't remember that."

The frown stayed on Joey's face, as the wheels got some momentum going. "Did Bakura say anything to you about that night?"

"Huh? No..." Ryou's eyes widened in realization. "You think he found Yugi?"

"Maybe, I dunno." Joey scratched his head. "I'm just trying to figure it out, that's all."

Chocolate eyes softened at the blond. "Well, maybe he found Yugi, but let him think it was me so he wouldn't scare him off. Yugi was pretty unstable earlier that day." He leaned against Joey's comforting warmth again. "It's not that strange Bakura would care; after all, they'd gotten to be pretty close over the past while. Remember how jealous Yami had been?"

He smiled at the memories that brought up. Looking up at Joey he was surprised to see the frown still persisted in staying there. He reached up to smooth a thumb between blond eyebrows. "You'll wrinkle up faster that way, you know." He murmured teasingly.

Joey looked down and had to smile. "You're right. And I'm just re-hashing old guilts I guess." He leaned down to brush against soft lips.

"I guess it doesn't really matter anymore anyway..."

Ryou nodded as Joey lifted him up to carry him to bed. "We should leave the lights on, Bakura's not back yet."

"Where'd he disappear to, anyway?"

Joey's bundle shrugged disinterestedly as he reached up for another kiss. "I don't know, maybe he's staying with what's-his-name, Devlin. "

Joey gave his passenger a grin. "Well, in that case..."

TBCTBCTBCTBCTBCTBCTBCTBCTBC

A/N: Promise! Almost done the next chapter! (crosses her heart) 


	5. I Pray the Lord My Soul to Take

Can I Sleep With You?

Epilogue - _I Pray the Lord My Soul To Take._

  
  
All was quiet in the cemetery at that time of night. It was almost scenic in the moonlight, all colour washed away, bleaching everything out. 

A perfect night for a solitary stroll through the rows upon rows of stone monuments. At least it seemed so to Yami until he heard a faint noise of someone... shovelling?...around the bend in the trail, close to the plot where Yugi's grave...

He found himself racing toward the sound, furious at whoever _dared_....

...And stopped cold at the sight that confronted him. The white-haired figure looked up at his entrance, the shovel struck in the ground and one foot poised on top in order to lever it out.

Soft chocolate eyes gazed at him from under feathery white bangs. "Yami?" he asked in his soft, British accent, "What are you doing here?"

Yami glared angrily. "I should be asking you that, I think. Care to explain Ryou?" He gestured sharply to the shovel in the albino's hands.

The other tipped his head curiously at the other man, then looked down at his hands. "Oh!" He gave a little laugh. "I guess this does look kind of funny, doesn't it?" He smiled up at Yami.

Yami crossed his arms, still frowning. "'Funny' isn't the word I would use. What are you doing to my aibou's grave?" He spat.

The other stepped to the side, revealing a small, uprooted baby rose bush that had been hidden behind him. "I thought that I might plant these here, since they are -_were_," He corrected himself, "Yugi's favourite flower. Perhaps when it rains here, they might cheer him up a little." He shrugged. "I know it's probably silly of me, but.."

He looked at the churned up ground beneath him. "..But I need to do _something_ for him." He whispered raggedly.

Yami looked at him sympathetically and sighed. "I understand. I only wish there was something I could do for him as well." He trailed off, gazing up at the stars. Shaking his head to bring himself back to earth, he continued. "I apologize for disturbing you. I came here to visit Yugi myself but, " He eyed the other, "perhaps I'll come another time."

The white-haired man started. "Oh! Don't leave because of me, Yami. I'll soon be done here."

Yami waved him off, saying. "No, I also came for a bit of solitude as well. It's all right, Ryou." He smiled sadly. "I don't mind. I'll leave you to your work."

And so saying, he disappeared back down the trail he entered from.

Brown eyes watched him go.

....END...

.......

.... 

..

.

..... 

........?

An overworked owl tiredly rested on a thick branch. He sighed dispiritedly.

He'd worked all night trying to find some mice for his pregnant mate, but to no avail. Something had been scaring them into hiding since the moon had come up.

Gravel crunched loudly under hard-soled shoes, startling the irate owl into flight.

Bakura looked up absently at an irritated hoot above him, a few displaced leaves drifted down to his feet. Shrugging, he strode towards the cemetery gates. If one didn't know him, they could say he was almost skipping.

Grinning down at the prize tucked under his arm, the spirit of the ring bounced the shovel playfully on his shoulder in a mock-wave at the disturbed earth he left behind him by a familiar marker.

"Thank god for the shadows and Yami's preoccupation," He smirked. "If not for that, doubtless he would've seen all the extra dirt strewn around." He sighed in exasperation. "Bloody pharaoh couldn't wait another ten minutes until I had it completely filled in again, could he?"

He held the golden puzzle up to the moonlight to inspect it carefully for damage."About bloody time, anyway, Yugi." He said lightly. "I was starting to think you'd never take a hint."

He grinned evilly with a glint in his eye.

THE END

(No, really this time. It's over. Done. F-I-N-I-S-H-E-D)


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